Ragonga
Ragonga is the name of a great sea serpent which inhabits the oceans surrounding the country of Bantia. It's large size and viscous demeanor have become the stuff of legends to the fishermen and sailors in the area. Appearance Ragonga is a massive sea serpent, measuring almost three hundred feet from snout to tail. It's scales are light blue in color, but shimmer purple when in direct sunlight. It's head most resembles a snake, with a mouth full of inward curved teeth, perfect for grabbing and tearing at the flesh of it's pray. Sat on either side of is head are a pair of large, spined fins, which Ragonga can flair out as an intimidation tactic, or simply to help it make sharp turn in the water. These also serve to protect it's gills, which are located on the neck just behind it's head. It possesses four pectoral fins, each able to bend and shift independently of the other, and a long line of webbed spines that run from the middle of it's tail to the end. Lastly, Ragonga possesses a number of bio-luminescent patches all over it's body. The tip[ of each of it's fins glow with an eerie blue light, as well as a number of V shaped patches lining it's underside. Personality Being a monster, the most people ever know about Ragonga is it's ferocity. It should be noted however, that legends and stories of the creature may have become embellished over the years. What is known however, is that Ragonga is a large, apex predictor. For months at a time, it will lie dormant, as it has an extraordinarily low metabolism. for a few weeks out of every four months however, it will go into a feeding frenzy, eating whatever it can to save up enough energy to go into hibernation again. During it's feeding period, it will attack almost anything it thinks is edible, but prefers to frequent within the epicenters of oceanic storms. The reason for this is as of yet unknown, bit it does owe credence to the legends as a beast which can control the weather. Notably, however, Ragonga seems to have learned not to stray too close to the shoreline. The reasons for this are also unknown, as in the past it also made a habit of praying on the smaller island settlements of Bantia's many islands. One speculated reason was that with the advance of industry within the country, it has learned that there isn't much food to be gained by attacking ocean-side settlements. That is only one of many theories however, Ragonga's true hunting patterns remain difficult to predict. History Legends of Ragonga date back as far as Bantia's recorded history. It came up first as a superstitious sailor's tail, told as a cautionary tail to beware the dangers of ocean travel. Ships, sometimes dozen at a time, would disappear into oceanic storms, and Ragonga would be labeled as the cause. At the time however, Ragonga was thought of as more of a sea curse, rather than a monster. Rare sightings would be attributed to the trauma of a shipwreck, or lesser monsters of the sea, and the legend would grow with the body count. It wasn't until a Magic Council vessel did battle with the creature, limping back to shore with half it's crew lost at sea, was the monster confirmed to be more than a mere superstition. This turned a legend into a very real threat in the minds of every sailor in the country.what followed was a years long campaign to hunt down and kill the creature, who's attacks had only seemed to increase in number since it's first reported contact. battles against the creature where difficult to plan, as the creature had made it's home in particularly treacherous waters, and sometimes vessel would be lost to a storm or reefs without ever spotting the beast. even when they could engage the creature in combat, Ragonga would simply disappear into the depths, making it impossible to follow. Eventually, it was decided that a better alternative was to simply avoid the creature. The years worth of skirmishes had allowed the Magic Council to map out a general idea of it's territory, and that allowed them to lay out a so called "Safe zone" for ships to pass through. As the beast preferred deeper waters, this made it easy to stay out of it's path. In the years gone by, sightings of the creature have been few and far between, and attacks have been ever rarer. However, the Magic Council has since put out a quest for all mage guilds in the country, hoping that one day someone will be skilled, or lucky, enough to hunt down and kill the beast once and for all. Abilities Immeasurable strength - Owing it it's incredible size, Ragona possesses incredible strength, which is made all the more dangerous by it's environment. While feats of the beasts strength have been few and far between, it has been observed overturning large ships with a swipe of it's tail. Other instances involve it tearing through the hull of a metal ship with it's jaws. Judging by it's size, it has been summarized that it has no natural predictors, and it's body's lack of scares means that this has been the case for a very long time. Incredible speed - Despite Ragonga's immense size, it is deceptively fast moving, even above water. The slender fins that litter it's body allow it to twist and spin in any direction, and it's powerful serpentine body can propel it through the water at over fifty knots, or over ninety kilometers per hour. This has made capturing or killing it a very difficult task, as it can ambush hunting ships at a moments notice and retreat to safety just as quickly should it sense it is in danger. Deceptive Cunning - While well known for it's beastly ferocity, Ragonga possesses a higher than average intelligence, for a monster, that is. It has been documented to resort to ambush attacks against larger targets, such as lunging upward from deep water and disembowel whales with a single bite. it also possesses an incredible memory, and has sometimes been known to follow the whaling ships with the intent of stealing their harvest. Sometimes it has even followed the ships back to port, and will circle for days looking to capitalize in it';s hunt. It does have a temper, and can be thrown into a rage if provoked. Despite this, however, he has little interest in humans. It has been speculated that many of Ragonga's attacks are a case of mistaken identity, it mistaking ships for the large whales that it commonly makes it's pray. Nocturnal - As if hunting the creature wasn't hard enough, Ragonga appears to be naturally nocturnal. While attacks in the day aren't unheard of, many of Ragonga's sightings have occurred at night, and often in heavy storms. As such, it possesses incredible night vision, which also aids it in the deep ocean. Category:Character Category:Characters Category:Original Character Category:Original Characters Category:Non-Human Category:Non-Mage Category:Monster Category:Monsters